This proposal is for support of a research and intervention study focusing on couple relationships in family formation. If there is one critical period which sets the stage for family adaptation, it is likely to be the transition from being a couple to becoming a family. The proposed study examines couple relationships in depth during that transition. Based on a conceptual model of couple relationships and an approach to preventive intervention developed in previous pilot work, the study will: 1. assess couple relationship patterns in mid-pregnancy, and at six and eighteen months after the birth of a first child; 2. identify mid-pregnancy patterns associated with variation in couple patterns and levels of adaptation after childbirth; and 3. evaluate the effect of the assessment instruments and of an ongoing couples' group on later couple adaptation. Twelve instruments will be used to assess individual and couple patterns on four relationship dimensions: psychological sense of self; role behaviors; communication pattersn; family environment schemes. In all, 128 couples in four conditions will complete the instruments. Sixty-four couples will be assessed during mid-pregnancy, and at 6 months and 18 months after childbirth; 32 of them will also participate in small weekly groups from mid-pregnancy to 3 months after childbirth, with discussion focusing on dimensions of couple relationships as measured by the instruments, and on daily issues in the lives of expectant couples. Another 32 couples will be assessed only after childbirth -- at 6 and 18 months after becoming parents. Finally, 32 couples -- equivalent to the others but not in a transition to parenthood -- will be assessed at two points in their relationship. The results will have significance for basic knowledge of couple relationship development, particularly during family formation. The data will also assist future plans for preventive intervention to facilitate the transition to parenthood.